2025 marks two important milestones in the relationship between Norway and the United States—the 200th anniversary of the first organized emigration from Norway to North America and the celebration of 100 years of Norwegian-American educational cooperation. Here at Augsburg, it is also the 50th anniversary of the 1975 Augsburg Choir tour to Norway. 

A Century of Educational Cooperation

At an event in Oslo on May 15, Augsburg University alumni joined President Paul Pribbenow and His Majesty King Harald V in recognition of the deep and enduring educational ties between the U.S. and Norway.

The event, held at Fanehallen in Akershus Fortress and co-hosted by the Norway-America Association, brought together alumni from from six sister universities, all founded by Norwegian immigrants—institutions which for generations have been bridge-builders between Norway and the United States. With academics, diplomats, business leaders and guests from Norway and the United States, the evening served as a tribute to shared history, knowledge, and future cooperation. Former Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs and head of the Parliament’s Defence and Foreign Affairs Committee, Ine Eriksen Søreide, gave the keynote speech. 

The six universities—Augsburg, Augustana University, Concordia College, Luther College, Pacific Lutheran University and St. Olaf College—were all founded by Norwegian immigrants. For over a hundred years, they have welcomed Norwegian students and maintained strong ties to Norway. At the event, Pribbenow delivered remarks about the importance of the long-term cross-Atlantic collaboration. 

“At a time when transatlantic relations are being challenged, it is more important than ever to strengthen student exchanges. The relationship with the United States is about more than trade and defence—it is also about knowledge, understanding and common values,” said Hanne K. Aaberg, Secretary General of the Norway-America Association (NORAM). 

NORAM works to promote mutual knowledge and understanding between Norway and North America. For over 100 years, NORAM has worked for transatlantic cooperation and helped more than 5,000 students with scholarships and advising.

Music and Memory

On May 17, members of the 1975 Augsburg Choir returned to campus to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their choir tour to Norway. 

The covered the tour: “In late spring of this year, the Augsburg Choir traveled to Norway as the cultural ambassadors for Minnesota to the first ceremonies in the National Theater in Oslo on Syttende Mai (Norwegian Independence Day – May 17). They traveled under an invitation from Nordmann’s Forbundet, who made all arrangements for them in the Scandinavian countries. Due to Nordmann’s Forbundet arrangements, the choir was well received in 19 cities throughout Norway and Sweden. The reviews were fantastic including, “Without a doubt they (the choir) rank among the ‘world’s elite’ as choirs …” Romesdals folkebald, Molde, Norway … The choir was the first group to be invited to Norway as part of the Sesquicentennial celebration.” Augsburg continued to be heavily involved in the year-long sesquicentennial celebration of the Norwegian immigration to the United States, culminating with a visit to campus by King Olav V in October 1975. 

Of the 65 alumni who participated in the 1975 tour, 49 were present for the 2025 reunion, along with several partners and spouses. It was a meaningful day filled with reconnecting, reminiscing, and joining together in song and laughter. The reunion was a special opportunity to honor the lasting friendships, shared history, and enduring power of music that have united Auggies for decades. .

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Read the article on the Kansas City Star site. For more information on future choir performances, visit the Augsburg Choir Tour site.

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“It’s an experience I will always remember, not only because I got to perform with Barry Manilow, but as the choir manager I got to be interviewed by KARE 11 and FOX 9,” Schultz said. “I’m glad it happened when I was in the choir, for sure.”

The article also notes that Schultz will be performing with a mixed choir in Italy this summer. “I don’t know when I’ll get another opportunity to do this,” she said of the trip.

Read Hastings’ Abby Schultz performed with Barry Manilow, Augsburg College Choir on the Hastings Star Gazette site.

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Read Eden Prairie graduate performs with Barry Manilow on the Sun Current site. For more information about the performance, visit the .

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“It was unbelievable to share the stage with someone so well respected and well known in the music world,” Selissen said. “I am amazed how many hit songs he’s had and with all the commercial jingles he’s wrote; he is extremely talented.”

The students who performed with Manilow were each given a pair of complimentary tickets to the concert. Selissen, a music therapy major, happily gifted her tickets to two of her clients. One of the clients uses Manilow’s music extensively in his therapy sessions.

“He knows every song and all the words so it was such a coincidence when we were asked to do this. This client was beyond excited to not only go to his first concert, but to see his very favorite singer,” Selissen said.

Read HHS alum performs with Barry Manilow on the Hudson Star-Observer site.

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The Augsburg Choir

On May 6, the Augsburg Choir, under the direction of Peter Hendrickson ’76, departed for a 12-day tour of the Midwest. With stops in North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, and Washington state, the Choir will perform nine concerts and have opportunities to connect with potential Auggies and their families as well as alumni and friends of the College.

Teaching English as a Second Language in Thailand with Kathryn Swanson

This is the fifth year that English professor Kathy Swanson and her husband, Jack, have taken students to teach English in Thailand as part of a short-term study abroad course through the Center for Global Education. Years ago, the Swansons served in the Peace Corps in Thailand for two years and still have connections in the small town where they once taught.

Before departing, students learn about language and culture in Thailand and practice speaking some “survival Thai,” Swanson said. For the teaching week, students learn the pedagogy of teaching English as a second language—essentially what and how to teach. Some students on the program are English or education majors, but others are from other majors including business, religion, and the sciences. Students take Swanson’s class, she said, not only to learn more about teaching English to language learners but also to experience life in a country half way around the world from the U.S.

For the three weeks they are in Thailand, Swanson said the group has an intense schedule filled with a variety of experiences. They travel by plane, boat, train, taxi, subway, tuk-tuks (a small open motorized vehicle, like a rickshaw), and even have a chance to ride elephants. They also take in tourist activities such as visiting temples, rafting on the river, and visiting pottery and silk makers. Then for ten days, they teach in Prachuap Khirikhan, the town where the Swansons taught while in the Peace Corps.

Swanson said the students often comment in their travel journals that they are completely shocked by their experiences in Thailand—by the sights and sounds and by the stark contrast between the poverty and opulence that can be seen there. “The only way to understand anything about the world is to do it,” she said. “Word of mouth among students is that it’s exhausting but it’s worth it.”

Pictured above: Students on the 2008 Thailand program. See photos from the program on flickr.

Youth Movements and Social Change in Egypt with Joe Underhill and Mohamed Sallam

In this combined course in political science and history, students will explore the roots of Egypt’s largely youth-led revolution and ongoing efforts to rebuild Egypt. Students will examine the effects that the 2011 revolution has had on public discourse about environmental sustainability, police brutality, Muslim-Christian relations, and access to basic services. They will also observe the historic presidential elections taking place in late May, visit mosques and pyramids, Nubian villages, an ecotourism resort on the Red Sea, and a Bedouin camp in the desert.

Read about the group’s experiences on the authored by Joe Underhill.

International Management and Finance in Germany with Marc McIntosh

For four weeks in May and June, a group of German students and professors from Karlsruhe paired with Augsburg students and assistant business professor Marc McIntosh to study international business practices.

The group met for the first two weeks in Europe, visiting the European Parliament in Strasbourg and witnessing firsthand the financial crisis that was coming to a head in Europe at that time. They also went to the Frankfurt stock exchange and experienced the volatility in the financial market as a result of the crisis, McIntosh said.

While in the U.S., the students visited three companies with strong ties to Germany and gained insights into how to do business in overseas markets. Finally, the students participated in an intensive business simulation game with teams competing to maximize shareholder value through the launches of multiple product offerings.

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The year-end performances, according to director Peter Hendrickson ’76, DMA, are the requisite capstone of the singers’ learning experience. He said, “Music is a threefold process: the composer writes a piece, the choir learns the music, and the choir performs before an audience. This sequence is how music is brought to fruition, and it only occurs in performance. Thus, the end product of this academic discipline is where students learn the art of bringing music to life.”

The choir also uses the tour as an outreach opportunity, connecting with alumni and donors and promoting Augsburg to future students. The group will sing in the home congregations of two choir members: senior Alex Grangaard ’08 of Tiffin, Ohio, and Cassandra Sanders ’09 of East Dundee, Illinois.

Grangaard is looking forward to singing in Illinois. “I’ll be not only singing at my home congregation, but also my old choir director is the head of music for my church. This means a lot for me because he was a mentor for me growing up but also because he got me into choir in the first place,” he said.

The tour is not all singing and driving. The choir will have time in our nation’s capital to explore the sights and will travel through the famous Shenandoah National Park (a part of the Blue Ridge Mountains) en route from Washington, DC to Harrisonburg, Virginia.

A complete spring music department schedule including the tour concert itinerary is available at .

Choir tour by the numbers

2,964 — miles traveled on tour

423 — gallons of diesel used

130 — words sung in Warum ist das Licht gegeben by Johannes Brahms

60 — choir members

14 — years Peter Hendrickson has directed the Augsburg Choir

12 — works performed per concert including encore

10 — days of travel

8 — tour stops

2 — buses and drivers

1 — home concert on Friday, May 2

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The 20th Reformation Sunday “Singing the Faith” hymn fest at Luther Seminary on Oct. 28 will feature the Augsburg Choir and include other Augsburg connections. The program starts at 7 p.m. in Olson Campus Center.

The theme, “The Apostles’ Creed and the Hymnody of Paul Gerhardt,” celebrates the 400th anniversary of the birth of this hymn writer, known as the “Sweet Singer of Lutheranism.” Gracia Grindal ‘65, Luther Seminary professor of rhetoric and creator of “Singing the Faith,” has chosen to focus on Gerhardt’s hymn, Befiehl du deine Wege (Trust in God), based on Psalm 34. The Augsburg Choir, directed by Peter Hendrickson, will premiere a newly-commissioned work, which introduces a new tune for the hymn, and Grindal is providing a more poetic translation for the hymn text.

This hymn has enjoyed many faith connections since first being sung in the mid-17th century. Methodism’s founder, John Wesley, heard it while sailing to America with a group of Moravians and translated it. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote of it during his imprisonment in World War II. And, the hymn is used as a theme in Johanna Spyri’s book, Heidi, as the young girl reads its words and grows to understand how God works through difficulties to provide comfort in people’s lives.

The Augsburg participation in the program marks long and shared traditions between the college and seminary. In addition to Grindal’s translation, Peter Hendrickson will play the organ and direct the Augsburg Choir. Augsburg musicians will also play in the string/wind ensemble, and President Pribbenow will be a reader.

The commissioned music, a concertato for strings, choir, and the congregation, was written by Dawn Sonntag, adjunct instructor at the College of St. Catherine and director of music at the Norwegian Memorial Lutheran Church.

A German dinner at 5:30 p.m. will precede the program in the Campus Center; the cost is $15. For information, contact the seminary’s communication office at 651-641-3451.

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